A Thousand Cuts
Page 12
‘Oh, for the love of God, Spike! I’ve just had Siri Baxter on the phone.’ Peter let out a heaving sigh. ‘Help out an old cripple, would you?’
Spike flipped open his desk diary and read out the log-in information for the firm’s account. ‘That it, then?’ Spike caught the words ‘Siri’ and ‘donation’ in Peter’s reply, and laid the receiver down on his desk. Thirty seconds later, he picked it back up and heard ‘. . .via the Client Account.’
‘Sorry?’ But Peter had already rung off.
Whatever, Spike thought, returning to the broader implications of Case C-98-14. The print danced before his eyes. Maybe he should ring Jessica again, see if she’d heard anything. But just as he picked up his phone, he heard a knock at the door and saw Ana Lopes holding a large brown envelope. ‘It’s from the National Archives,’ she said as she laid it down on his desk.
Spike nodded. ‘I should get my head down for an hour. No disturbances, please, Ana.’
‘Busy, busy, Mr Sanguinetti,’ Ana muttered. The door closed, and Spike sat back for a moment, trying to work out if she was being ironic. Then he tore open the envelope, took out the declassified MI5 file and started to read.
PART THREE
P.F. No. 66072 RA
SUPPLEMENTARY VOLUME HELD BY S.L.B.1.
REYES, ESTEBAN ALEJANDRO
Section: DG
Date: 24.03.41
Downing Street,
S.W.1.
18th October, 1940
33/15982/2/53
IMMEDIATE SECRET
Dear Major Shawfield
I refer to our conversation of 2nd October inst. regarding the draft obituary notice. As you will recall, it was my suggestion at that time that a copy of such notice should be sent to the Foreign Office for their comments and amendments, so as to be ready for timely distribution to the press in the United Kingdom and Gibraltar in the event of the sentence of death being carried out upon Esteban Alejandro Reyes.
We have now received confirmation from the Governor of Gibraltar that he has considered the case of Esteban Alejandro Reyes and, in accordance with Rule XXIII of the Royal Instructions, has concluded that the sentence of death should be carried out.
Having contacted the Foreign Office, I was disappointed to learn that they have received no such communication from you. It is therefore as a matter of urgency that I ask you to provide the Foreign Office not only with the draft notice, but also with the full statements and reports of the case. As soon as their concurrence is obtained, they will telegraph the official obituary notice to the Colonial Office, Privy Council Office and Security Service.
Your sincerely,
E.B.H. Hayward, Esq.
SECRET TELEGRAM RECEIVED IN CIPHER
From: D.S.O., Gibraltar
Office File No.: PF. 55051
Date of Origin: 22.10.40
Date of Receipt: 23.10.40
Deciphered by: MN
1. Draft obituary notice sent to you to-day by aeroplane
2. Copy of complete statements and reports in same transit
3. Apologies for delay; somewhat busy this end
MOST SECRET
COMPLETE STATEMENTS AND REPORTS OF THE CASE REX ... v ... ESTEBAN ALEJANDRO REYES
DEFENCE SECURITY OFFICE
GIBRALTAR
SEPTEMBER 1940
STATEMENT OF KENNETH MICHAEL SHAWFIELD, DEFENCE SECURITY OFFICER, GIBRALTAR, made at DEFENCE SECURITY OFFICE, GIBRALTAR on 17th June, 1940.
1. I have held the position of Defence Security Officer, Gibraltar, since March 1937. Prior to that, I worked for the Imperial Security Service in London and abroad. Given the unique strategic position in which the Rock of Gibraltar finds herself during this conflict, my role, by its very nature, is broad and somewhat imprecise in its remit.
2. In view of the increasing Abwehr presence across the border in Spain, a significant amount of my time is devoted to investigating the activities of enemy-inspired sabotage organisations operating in Gibraltar and beyond. To assist me in these investigations, I have constructed a secret network of agents and sources.
3. At approximately 9.45 p.m. on 10th April this year, I heard an explosion from my house on Ragged Staff Road, and saw smoke rising from what appeared to be the Admiralty Fuel Depot. As soon as I reached H.M. Dockyard, however, it became clear that the smoke was in fact coming from inside the Dry Dock enclosure.
4. I made my rank known to the Dockyard Policeman on duty, P.C. SIMON RAMIREZ, who informed me that the Dry Docks were clear of personnel. As a result, the emergency services focused their efforts on controlling the blaze from the outside. However, when the firefighters came to enter the enclosure, they discovered in Dry Dock 3 the bodies of two Royal Naval Engineers, ENGINEER COMMANDER ARTHUR URQUHART BAINES and ENGINEER LIEUTENANT HAROLD JOHN BECK. They also found a third man, alive but gravely injured, later identified as ESTEBAN ALEJANDRO REYES.
5. As a consequence of these developments, I summoned P.C. RAMIREZ back to the scene in order to take a second statement.
FIRST STATEMENT MADE BY POLICE CONSTABLE SIMON PEDRO RAMIREZ, P.C. NO. 8, H.M. DOCKYARD, AT THE DETECTIVE OFFICE, H.M. DOCKYARD, GIBRALTAR, AT 10.30 P.M. ON 10TH APRIL, 1940.
Question: Were you the Police Constable on duty at the Dry Docks this evening?
Answer: Yes, I relieved P.C. THOMPSON at 7 p.m.
Question: What are the functions of your role?
Answer: Seeing to it that no one goes into the Dry Docks what’s not supposed to be there.
Question: Did you see anyone enter or leave the Dry Docks during your shift?
Answer: No, I didn’t see no one.
Question: Was there any evidence of a fire before you heard the explosion? Smoke, perhaps, or flames?
Answer: Just a bang. That was when the fire started.
Question: Can you describe the sound of the explosion?
Answer: It come from nowhere. I felt it in my chest. My ears still ain’t right.
Question: And you were at your post all night?
Answer: That’s right, Sir. Until the explosion. Then I got myself off to get help.
Signed: SIMON RAMIREZ,
Police Constable,
GIBRALTAR
SECOND STATEMENT MADE BY P.C. SIMON PEDRO RAMIREZ AT 1.30 A.M. ON 11TH APRIL, 1940.
Question: In light of the new information that has come to our attention, I would ask you to give careful consideration before answering the following question, P.C. RAMIREZ. Where were you between 8.30 p.m. and the time of the explosion?
Answer: In the Mess Hut with P.C. DAVID MCDOWELL and P.C. JEREMY TORRES. We get together sometimes for a poker game. Just a few cards, it’s good for morale.
Question: Would it have been possible for someone to enter the Dry Docks during the time that you were away from your sentry box?
Answer: No, Sir. We always look out for each other’s stations, so there ain’t no risk.
Question: But you were in the Mess Hut at the time of the explosion, weren’t you?
Answer: We stick our heads out every now and again. Keep an eye on things.
Question: And you consider that to be a sufficient discharge of your duties, P.C. RAMIREZ?
Answer: Look, I’ve never seen no one trying to get into the Dry Docks after hours, and I’ve been sat in that box every night for six months.
Question: How often do you play poker?
Answer: Once a week on Wednesdays, when the others are on shift.
Question: So it’s a regular arrangement?
Answer: I suppose you could say that.
Question: So if someone were familiar with your routine, they would know there was likely to be a period on a Wednesday night when you were not at your post? When it might be possible to access the Dry Docks unseen?
Answer: Like I said, Sir, I do what’s asked of me and I never let no one come in or out without the proper papers. All the other P.C.s have got reprimands for sleeping on the job. But not me, I never close my eyes.
Police Constable,
GIBRALTAR
STATEMENT MADE BY ENGINEER CAPTAIN CLIVE LEWIS CHIVERS, CAPTAIN OF NAVAL ENGINEER CORPS, AT BRITISH MILITARY HOSPITAL, GIBRALTAR, ON 11TH APRIL, 1940, AT 10 A.M.
I am Engineer Captain Clive Chivers, Captain of the Corps of the Royal Naval Engineers currently stationed in Gibraltar.
I identify the bodies in this mortuary as belonging to ENGINEER COMMANDER ARTHUR URQUHART BAINES and ENGINEER LIEUTENANT HAROLD JOHN BECK, two men of my command.
ENGINEER COMMANDER BAINES led the unit tasked with fitting out fishing vessels requisitioned from Gibraltar and Malta by H.M. Navy. His command was exemplary and his technical knowledge and skills irreproachable. I cannot conceive that the source of the explosion within the Dry Docks could have been related to the valuable work in which his unit was engaged, although it is my understanding that explosive devices are occasionally required in connection with that work.
ENGINEER LIEUTENANT BECK was a subordinate but highly valued member of the team. A recent officer fitness report praised not only his diligence and level-headedness, but also his meticulous approach to his work. Although he, like many young servicemen stationed far from home, on occasion drank to excess, he was not an habitual drinker, and I strenuously refute the contention that he would jeopardise his career by mishandling dangerous materiel whilst under the influence of alcohol in the workplace.
I cannot say why ENGINEER COMMANDER BAINES and ENGINEER LIEUTENANT BECK chose to return to Dry Dock 3 after hours, nor if they were acquainted with a man named ESTEBAN ALEJANDRO REYES.
Signed: ENGINEER CAPTAIN CLIVE CHIVERS,
Royal Navy, Gibraltar
STATEMENT MADE BY GREGORY CAMILLERI, BRITISH SUBJECT, CHARGEMAN OF MOULDERS, H.M. DOCKYARD, GIBRALTAR, AT BRITISH MILITARY HOSPITAL, GIBRALTAR, ON 11TH APRIL, 1940, AT 11 A.M.
I am the Chargeman of Moulders, C.E. Department, H.M. Dockyard, Gibraltar.
ESTEBAN ALEJANDRO REYES, No. 3561, works as a labourer under my supervision.
REYES entered my employment on 12th July, 1939. I set him to work transporting brass and iron casings from the moulds. He is a good strong worker, but can sometimes be uncivil in his manner.
I confirm that the Dockyard Identification Card you have shown me is the one issued to REYES. But I cannot identify for certain the man lying here because of the bandages on his face.
I declare this to be true.
Signed: G. CAMILLERI
STATEMENT OF KENNETH MICHAEL SHAWFIELD, DEFENCE SECURITY OFFICER, GIBRALTAR, made at DEFENCE SECURITY OFFICE, GIBRALTAR on 17th June, 1940 – CONTD.
1. The witness known as ‘LAUREL’ first came to my attention in December 1939, when he was stopped by Border Police crossing the frontier from La Línea to Gibraltar in possession of contraband. Through his illegal activities, LAUREL had built up a number of useful contacts in La Línea, and with a degree of coercion, was persuaded to work for the Security Service as an informant.
2. Over the past year, a man of especial interest to the Security Service has been RAÚL DE HERRERA, a Falangist poet and pamphleteer who moved back from Madrid to his native La Línea in the summer of 1937. DE HERRERA is believed to have been working as an agent of the German Abwehr, specifically tasked with the recruitment of potential Spanish saboteurs.
3. Over the course of one of my regular briefings with LAUREL, it emerged that he had already forged a loose acquaintance with DE HERRERA, although he professed to know nothing of DE HERRERA’s political inclinations. I therefore encouraged LAUREL to cultivate this connection, and he and DE HERRERA began to meet often in the cafes and bars of La Línea. Consequently, LAUREL’s value as an operative increased.
4. On the day after the explosion, I instructed LAUREL to meet me at the Defence Security Office for a private debrief.
5. I wish to emphasise that LAUREL has never received payment for his information, and that it is my considered opinion that any and all assistance he has given is evidence of his good character and loyalty to the British cause.
FIRST STATEMENT GIVEN BY ‘LAUREL’ AT DEFENCE SECURITY OFFICE, GIBRALTAR, ON 12TH APRIL, 1940.
THE ORIGINAL DOCUMENT RETAINED IN DEPARTMENT UNDER SECTION 3(4) OF THE PUBLIC RECORDS ACT 1958.
MEMORANDUM
To the Governor and Commander in Chief, Gibraltar
1. Given the sensitive nature of certain testimonies, particularly those pertaining to Security Service investigations which stray into foreign territory, I would counsel that when the Reyes case is tried, all such evidence be given in camera.
2. In the interests of national security, this is particularly apposite as regards the evidence of LAUREL, a key witness in this case.
3. I therefore propose that for the entire duration of the trial, LAUREL be referred to only by his pseudonym, and that the Judge be appraised that this measure is necessary to secure the protection of the witness.
S.L.B.1.
15.04.40
Signed: K.M. Shawfield
TECHNICAL REPORT ON SABOTAGE MATERIAL
The ‘galapago’ bomb comprises a small quantity of high explosive, typically not more than 2 lbs. ‘Galapago’ means ‘tortoise’ in Spanish, and the curved, shell-like shape of the metallic device makes clear the reason for the name. At one end of its upper side lies a hole into which a time fuse mechanism can be inserted. Fixed to its flat underside are magnets, which are used to secure the device to a metal surface – as, for example, the shaft of a torpedo.
The time fuse mechanism used is colloquially known as a ‘pencil’. It is composed of three compartments. The first is made of copper and contains a glass ampoule of acid. A strand of copper wire attaches this to the second, which encloses a suppressed spring and a striker. The third compartment contains the detonator. A thin strip of metal prevents the striker from detonating the firing cap, and also operates as a rudimentary safety mechanism and timer. The strip is painted a particular colour to indicate the length of delay for which that ‘pencil’ is designed.
In order to operate the time fuse, the glass ampoule of acid is broken by squeezing or biting the copper casing. The safety strip is then removed, and the ‘pencil’ can be inserted into the explosive. Once released, the acid eats through the copper wire. As soon as the wire breaks, the spring is released, the striker hits the detonator, and the device explodes.
CONCLUSION
Having studied the aftermath of the Dockyard explosion, I can confirm that its characteristics conform in every essential to those I have seen created by other ‘galapago’ bombs.
The extent of the damage was such that it was unlikely to have been caused by a ‘galapago’ in isolation. Accordingly, it is my contention that the perpetrator or perpetrators sought to intensify the blast by triggering the torpedoes of the trawler berthed in Dry Dock 3. The ‘galapago’, therefore, was most likely clamped to the shaft or cap of one of the torpedoes.
These findings have been corroborated by Naval Bomb Safety Officer, D.R.T. ANGSTRUTHER, LT., R.N.V.R., who examined the scene with me at the personal behest of ENGINEER CAPTAIN CLIVE CHIVERS.
Signed: KENNETH SHAWFIELD,
DEFENCE SECURITY OFFICER,
16.04.40
HMS Cormorant
Gibraltar
17.04.40
Dear Major Shawfield
I must begin by offering you an apology for my behaviour towards you last night at the Bristol Hotel. Whilst the reasons underlying my vexation must be apparent to you, I sincerely regret my conduct, and hope that you will accept my unreserved apology, and also pass on these sentiments to Mrs Shawfield.
But the fact remains that this intolerable stalemate cannot be permitted to continue. I feel this so keenly that I was tempted to petition His Excellency, the Governor, himself. I only refrained from doing so because the tone in which I write would likely be deemed unbecoming of the gap between our ranks.
So I must ask you once again what you mean to do to bring
to justice the perpetrators of the Dockyard bomb. An atrocity has been committed on our soil, two of my Naval Officers have lost their lives, and the dismissal of one member of the Dockyard Police, and the suspension of two others, seems to me a woefully inadequate response. What is more, the perceived hesitancy of your investigation is having an adverse effect on morale amongst all Forces personnel here in Gibraltar.
I am not given to sentiment, as you well know, but allow me to tell you this. The widow of Engineer Commander Baines lost her eldest son six months ago in the submarine attack on Scapa Flow. She has another son departed for France with the B.E.F. The widow of Engineer Lieutenant Beck, moreover, is but twenty, and on learning of the death of her husband, entered into such a collapse that she is reported to have lost the child that she was carrying.
It seems to me that the very least you can do is order the immediate repatriation of both bodies.
Yours sincerely,
CLIVE LEWIS CHIVERS, E.C.
MEMORANDUM
To the Governor and Commander in Chief, Gibraltar
Perhaps I should let you draw the sting from this one, Your Excellency. Time for the Governess to unleash the cocktail trolley? Pink gins in the Convent garden? I fear my shiner may preclude my attendance, alas. Buena suerte, one and all.
S.L.B.1.
18.04.40
Dictated by: K.M. Shawfield
STATEMENT BY PETER MATTHEW ZAMMIT, BRITISH SUBJECT, OF 9 CRUTCHETT’S RAMP, GIBRALTAR, TAKEN AT THE DEFENCE SECURITY OFFICE, GIBRALTAR, ON 18TH APRIL, 1940.
I am the Acting General Manager of the Piccadilly Café, 14 Main Street, Gibraltar.
The Piccadilly is often patronised by British servicemen. On a good night, we can have as many as 80 customers between 7 p.m. and 10 p.m.. Under my orders are 2 barmen, 3 waiting staff and 1 ‘chucker-outer’.